How Will Generative AI Change My Course? (GAI Checklist)

With the growing prevalence of generative AI applications and the ongoing discussions surrounding their integration in higher education, it can be overwhelming to contemplate their impact on your courses, learning materials, and field. As we navigate these new technologies, it is crucial to reflect on how generative AI can either hinder or enhance your teaching methods. CATL has created a checklist designed to help instructors consider how generative artificial intelligence (GAI) products may affect your courses and learning materials (syllabi, learning outcomes, and assessment).

Each step provides guidance on how to make strategic course adaptations and set course expectations that address these tools. As you go through the checklist, you may find yourself revisiting previous steps as you reconsider your course specifics and understanding of GAI.

Checklist for Assessing the Impact of Generative AI on your Course

View an abridged, printable version of the checklist to work through on your own.

Step One: Experiment with Generative AI

  • Experiment with GAI tools. Test Copilot (available to UWGB faculty, staff, and students) by inputting your own assignment prompts and assessing its performance in completing your assignments.
  • Research the potential benefits, concerns, and use cases regarding generative AI to gain a sense of the potential applications and misuses of this technology.

Step Two: Review Your Learning Outcomes

  • Reflect on your course learning outcomes. A good place to start is by reviewing this resource on AI and Bloom’s Taxonomy which considers AI capabilities for each learning level. Which outcomes lend themselves well to the use of generative AI and which outcomes emphasize your students’ distinctive human skills? Keep this in mind as you move on to steps three and four, as the way students demonstrate achieved learning outcomes may need to be revised.

Step Three: Assess the Extent of GAI Use in Class

  • Assess to what extent your course or discipline will be influenced by AI advancements. Are experts in your discipline already collaborating with GAI tools? Will current or future careers in your field work closely with these technologies? If so, consider what that means about your responsibility to prepare students for using generative AI effectively and ethically.
  • Determine the extent of usage appropriate for your course. Will you allow students to use GAI all the time or not at all? If students can use it, is it appropriate only for certain assignments/activities with guidance and permission from the instructor? If students can use GAI, how and when should they cite their use of these technologies (MLA, APA, Chicago)? Be specific and clear with your students.
  • Revisit your learning outcomes (step two). After assessing the impact of advancements in generative AI on your discipline and determining how the technology will be used (or not used) in your course, return to your learning outcomes and reassess if they align with course changes/additions you may have identified in this step.

Step Four: Review Your Assignments/Assessments

  • Evaluate your assignments to determine how AI can be integrated to support learning outcomes. The previous steps asked you to consider the relevance of AI to your field and its potential impact on students’ future careers. How are professionals in your discipline using AI, and how might you include AI-related skills in your course? What types of skills will students need to develop independently of AI, such as creativity, interpersonal skills, judgement, metacognitive reflection, and contextual reasoning? Can using AI for some parts of an assignment free up students’ time to focus more on the parts that develop these skills?
  • View, again, this resource on AI capabilities versus distinctive human skills as they relate to the levels of Bloom’s Taxonomy.
  • Define AI’s role in your course assignments and activities. Like step three, you’ll want to be clear with your students on how AI may be used for specific course activities. Articulate which parts of an assignment students can use AI assistance for and which parts students need to complete without AI. If AI use doesn’t benefit an assignment, explain to your students why it’s excluded and how the assignment work will develop relevant skills that AI can’t assist with. If you find AI is beneficial, consider how you will support your students’ usage for tasks like editing, organizing information, brainstorming, and formatting. In your assignment instructions, explain how students should cite or otherwise disclose their use of AI.
  • Apply the TILT framework to your assignments to help students understand the value of the work and the criteria for success.

Step Five: Update Your Syllabus

  • Add a syllabus statement outlining the guidelines you’ve determined pertaining to generative AI in your course. You can refer to our syllabus snippets for examples of generative AI-related syllabi statements.
  • Include your revised or new learning outcomes in your syllabus and consider how you will emphasize the importance of those course outcomes for students’ career/skill development.
  • Address and discuss your guidelines and expectations for generative AI usage with students on day one of class and put them in your syllabus. Inviting your students to provide feedback on course AI guidelines can help increase their understanding and buy-in.

Step Six: Seek Support and Resources

  • Engage with your colleagues to exchange experiences and practices for incorporating or navigating generative AI.
  • Stay informed about advancements and applications of generative AI technology.

Checklist for Assessing the Impact of Generative AI on Your Course © 2024 by Center for the Advancement of Teaching and Learning is licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International

Want More Resources?

Visit the CATL blog, The Cowbell, for more resources related to generative AI in higher education.

Need Help?

CATL is available to offer assistance and support at every step of the checklist presented above. Contact CATL for a consultation or by email at CATL@uwgb.edu if you have questions, concerns, or perhaps are apprehensive to go through this checklist.

 

 

Pre-Semester Workshops (Summer 2024)

Get ready to teach! CATL is offering a variety of pre-semester workshops to help instructors prepare for their Fall 2024 courses. Each workshop will be held via Zoom.* If you would like to receive an Outlook invitation with the Zoom link, you can register. Registration is not required; feel free to drop into any session and meet the CATL team!

*The “Open Lab Time with CATL” session will be held in person in IS 1129A with a virtual option for remote participants.

Generative AI in the Classroom (Monday, Aug. 26, 2:00 p.m.)

Join us as we discuss the implications of emerging AI products and brainstorm strategies for adapting course materials and assessments. We encourage you to bring one of your assignments to this interactive workshop.

Monday, Aug. 26: Zoom meeting link

Creating and Sharing Video Recordings with Kaltura My Media (Monday, Aug. 26, 3:30 p.m. & Friday, Aug. 30, 9:00 a.m.)

Instructors at UWGB can use Kaltura My Media to create, upload, and share videos in Canvas courses. Join us for a one-hour session where we will cover how to create and share engaging instructional videos with Kaltura’s easy-to-use media tools and unlimited storage space.

Monday, Aug. 26: Zoom meeting link

Friday, Aug. 30: Zoom meeting link

Getting Started with Canvas Basics (Monday, Aug. 26, 6:00 p.m.)

This brief introductory workshop is for those with limited knowledge of Canvas but who need to quickly whip their classes into shape.

Monday, Aug. 26: Zoom meeting link

Accessibility in Canvas (Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2:00 p.m. & Tuesday, Sept. 3, 10:15 a.m.)

In order to create better learning experiences for our students, it is important that we improve our courses’ digital accessibility. Join us for a session where you’ll learn about key tools and best practices for accessible course design in Canvas.

Tuesday, Aug. 27: Zoom meeting link

Tuesday, Sept. 3: Zoom meeting link

Open Lab Time with CATL (Friday, Aug. 30, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.)

Stop by the computer lab (Instructional Services 1129A) and use this time to experiment with technology, including generative AI (Copilot) and Canvas, alongside the CATL team. CATL members will be available in the computer lab between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., as well as online via Zoom from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Friday, Aug. 30: Zoom meeting link

Setting Up Your Canvas Gradebook (Friday, Aug. 30, 11:15 a.m. & Tuesday, Sept. 3, 9 a.m.)

Maintaining an accurate gradebook in Canvas benefits students in any class modality. Bring your questions to this session as we explore the ins and outs of using the feature-rich Canvas gradebook.

Friday, Aug. 30: Zoom meeting link

Tuesday, Sept. 3: Zoom meeting link

Communication Methods & Recommendations

A communication challenge you might face whether you’re teaching in an in-person class, a hybrid one, or one that’s completely online, will be to try to communicate the same information to students who are not able to attend the in-person class, or to communicate with students who may have fallen behind. Remember, you should strive to provide equitable communication to all students, and opportunities for students to communicate with you and with each other, regardless of how they’re engaging with the course. Not only will some instructors have to consider how to communicate important information to students in different physical locations, but also across modalities and time.

The expandable sections below offer some additional information when considering how to communicate instructor to student, student to student, and student to instructor.

✅ Might work because

  • Efficient, but remember that your communication and that of your students will be limited by who attends in-person.
  • You can use the classroom environment to support your goals for the session: whiteboards, projectors, screens, and other equipment in a physical classroom.
  • Hand gestures and body language can help you get your point across.

❌ Might not work because

  • One group of students will get the information first.
  • We have limited interaction time with students, and may not be able to communicate everything we desire to in the time we have.
  • Potential classroom distractions may limit the intake of the communication for some individuals.

✅ Might work because

  • Personable and efficient.
  • Effective for one-to-one communication.

❌ Might not work because

  • Time intensive if you have to do this with every student.
  • Students don't necessarily talk on the phone—they may feel more comfortable communicating through email.
  • Ephemeral (unless you record it!)

✅ Might work because

  • A "distribution list" will allow you to send a message to your entire class at once.
  • Familiar to you and to students.

❌ Might not work because

  • One-on-one communication can get "noisy" and relies on the class list in SIS or Canvas (not Outlook).
  • Media limited.

 

✅ Might work because

  • Engage the whole class or specific groups of students.
  • Keep related things together.
  • Familiar in principle to students.
  • Less formal.

❌ Might not work because

  • Requires regular/frequent interaction for best results.
  • Small learning curve in Canvas initially.
  • Task needs clarification.
  • Less formal.

✅ Might work because

  • Intuitive and in Canvas.
  • Alert the whole class or sections of students all at once.
  • Allows for rich media (video messages, images, etc.).
  • Students get notified.
  • Allows for student comments (optional).

❌ Might not work because

  • Students can disable email notifications—but still see announcements when in Canvas.
  • Can get noisy with frequent use.

 

✅ Might work because

  • Feels more like being in the classroom.
  • Sessions can be recorded for review (or for those who miss).
  • Varying levels of interactive options (whiteboard, breakout groups, chat, polls, etc.).

❌ Might not work because

  • Steeper learning curve the first time.
  • Relies on a good connection and technology.
  • Logistically, some students cannot make it to synchronous sessions.

✅ Might work because

  • Allows instructors to create channels for specific people, or a whole class
  • Can @ people to notify them; and use emojis to respond to chats
  • Could be useful for communicating expectations for group work.

❌ Might not work because

  • Students may be more familiar with it as a synchronous meeting tool rather than as a communication tool
  • Easy to get lost in threads if users don't tag each other for communicating
  • Steep learning curve to utilize full functionality

✅ Might work because

  • Intuitive and familiar to students.
  • Easy to use.
  • Synchronous.
  • A "history" of the chat is available to the entire class making it good for Q&A-type sessions.

❌ Might not work because

  • Synchronous.
  • Media limited.
  • Whole-class only. Cannot be limited to specific students.

✅ Might work because

  • Displays course due dates automatically.
  • Can add other items (like reminders).

❌ Might not work because

  • Requires "due dates."
  • Only the names of events appear directly on the calendar.

✅ Might work because

  • Create blocks of time for students to sign up to meet one-on-one (e.g. office hours).
  • Can use a "feed" to add these blocks to Outlook.

❌ Might not work because

  • Required additional communication so students know how and to use them.

Using the Lightboard (eGlass) to Create Engaging Videos

photo of the lightboard studio 505B doorway.

What is the Lightboard Recording Studio?

Kaltura Video Tutorial: eGlass (Lightboard) Basics

UWGB instructors and students can reserve and use the Lightboard (eGlass) studio located on the 5th floor of the Cofrin Library (CL 505 B). The lightboard functions like a transparent whiteboard. You write on one side of it, and a camera records you from the other side.

Potential Use Cases

The lightboard can be a valuable tool for presenting complex materials, such as mathematical formulas or diagrams. By allowing presenters to write or draw while explaining content, it provides helpful visuals that enhance understanding, making it ideal for engaging students and simplifying complex topics.

It can also be used to facilitate ‘flipped learning.’ In this case, students receive scaffolded instruction outside of the classroom and class time is then reserved for discussion or activities in which students apply concepts to further engage with the subject matter.

Tips for Before You Record

Before you record your video using the lightboard, consider the following planning tips:

  • Keep it short. Lightboard videos should be a single topic that can fit easily on a single board. If your video requires constant erasing, it is likely too long.
  • Organize your content. Develop a structured outline or script and rehearse your video beforehand to ensure preparedness and to streamline the recording process.
  • Practice writing before you record. Spacing can be an issue on the lightboard so it is a good idea to practice laying out any complex drawings or text that you want to use in your video ahead of time. You could practice on a whiteboard or on the lightboard itself before recording.
  • Clothing choice. Dark, solid colors (grey, navy, deep reds, etc.) are best. The markers you use for the board are neon colors and tend to blend in with light shades, becoming hard to read. Avoid wearing black so you don’t blend in with the background and don’t wear clothing with large logos or lettering (the writing/logo of your shirt will be flipped and might be a potential distraction in the video).

Tips for Recording Your Video

During the recording process, keep the following tips in mind to enhance the quality and effectiveness of your video.

  • Do a quick mic-check. Consider recording a quick 10-30 second video to ensure that the microphone, camera, lightboard brightness and settings are functioning properly.
  • Stay close to the eGlass lightboard. Stepping away from the board will reduce the amount of light that hits your face and may also affect the camera focus, making you appear blurry.
  • Try to leave room for yourself as you write on the glass. Be mindful of space as you draw and write on the board. Move to the side as you write and try to not cover your face with text.
  • Point and emphasize content. When you are speaking about something specific on the board, point to it, circle it, or underline it to draw attention to that specific item.
  • Look at the camera when recording. When you are not drawing or writing, address the camera as it represents your audience.
  • Have fun with it and enjoy the process! Having fun while making these videos will make for more engaging content.

Reserving the Room

Reserve and check out the room through the UWGB library reservation system.

  • Note: Please call the UWGB IT Service Desk at 920-465-2309 or report issues to gbit@uwgb.edu if you encounter technical difficulties with the studio computer or lightboard hardware.

Related Resources & Alternative Recording Methods

Canvas Discussions Redesign Arrives May 13, 2024 

In Summer 2024, Canvas will officially roll out its “Discussions Redesign,” which will bring a visual refresh to Canvas Discussions while adding some new features. UW-Green Bay will be turning on the redesign between the Spring and Summer terms on Monday, May 13, 2024. On this date, all discussions will automatically upgrade to the redesign with no action needed from instructors. Read this post to learn about the new features coming to Discussions and where to look for familiar buttons that have changed locations within the Discussions Redesign.

New Features

The Discussions Redesign adds the following new ways for students and instructors to interact and to view discussion activity:

Anonymous Discussions

Screenshot of the Anonymous Discussion settings seen while creating or editing a Canvas discussion

With the Discussions Redesign, the options shown when creating a new discussion in a Canvas course remain largely unchanged except for the addition of a setting that allows instructors to enable full or partial anonymity while setting up an ungraded discussion. With “full” anonymity, all student replies will appear anonymously without the student’s name and profile picture. With “partial” anonymity, students can choose whether to reveal their name and profile picture while making a reply. Anonymity only applies to students; instructor posts and replies are always shown with names and profile pictures. If you allow students to create their own discussion topics, a new setting in the discussion options for your course allows you to choose whether students can create anonymous discussions.

@ Mentions

Screenshot of two discussion replies with @ mentions. The mentions each include a student's name and are highlighted in purple.

With the Discussions Redesign, discussion participants can mention an instructor or student in their replies by typing “@” and the beginning of a person’s name and then selecting the full name from a list of matches from the class roster that appears. Mentioned names are highlighted in the post and will trigger a notification for the mentioned person if they have the “New Mention” notification type enabled in their Canvas Notifications settings. Students and instructors can use this feature to more clearly identify who they are responding to in a discussion thread and get their attention.

Quote Reply

Screenshot of the Quote Reply option on a reply. The options menu icon and Quote Reply option are highlighted.

The Discussions Redesign has a new “Quote Reply” action which lets you include the contents of the post you are replying to within your reply. Using this feature will help add clarity to long discussion threads when replying to a post that is higher up in the thread. You can find the Quote Reply option within the options menu (the three vertical dots icon) of any discussion reply.

Multiple Viewing Options for Discussion Threads

A Canvas discussion reply. The link that can be selected to reveal threaded replies is highlighted and reads, "9 Replies, 2 Unread"

The Discussions Redesign offers a more condensed initial view where only the top-level replies to the topic are visible after opening a discussion. If a reply to the main topic has threaded replies (i.e., replies to the reply) “underneath” it, they are initially hidden, and the post will have a link under its contents which reports the number of threaded replies that are “underneath” that post. You can select that link to reveal the threaded replies in either an “Inline View,” which shows all replies underneath one another with varying indentation (like the older discussions design does), or a “Split View,” which shows threaded replies in a side panel that flies in from the right side of the screen.

A screenshot of the search bar and buttons found at the top of a Canvas discussion. The "View Split Screen" and "Expand Threads" buttons are highlighted.

You can switch between using the Inline and Split view modes with the View Inline / View Split Screen button at the top of the discussion page. When using Inline View, you can select the Expand Threads button at the top of the discussion to quickly reveal all threaded replies at once.

Edit History

A screenshot of a Canvas discussion reply that has been edited. The reply's "View History" link is highlighted.

If a student edits a reply after posting it, Canvas will now keep each version of that reply in an “edit history” that is available to instructors. Instructors will see a “view history” link on any reply that a student edited after posting and can select it to view that reply’s previous versions. Students can only view the edit history of their own replies.

Coming Soon: Discussion Checkpoints!

Canvas will soon (finally) be adding the oft-requested feature for supporting multiple due dates in a discussion. This feature may not yet be available when we enable the Discussions Redesign in May, but Canvas plans to add it during Summer 2024. With this feature, instructors will be able to easily set separate due dates for initial posts and for replies to peers’ posts within the same discussion, which will help automate reminders for students by adding calendar and to-do list items for each “checkpoint.” Watch for more information on this feature as it gets closer to release!

New Locations for Important Buttons

Don’t get lost within the Discussions Redesign by taking note of the following new locations for some often-used buttons:

Edit Button

A screenshot of the options menu for a Canvas discussion topic as seen by an instructor. The "options" icon and "Edit" menu item are highlighted.

The Edit button is moving from its prominent position at the top of the discussion page to being tucked within the options (three dots) menu found in the top-right corner of the discussion topic. Look for the Edit link in that options menu whenever you want to adjust an existing discussion’s settings.

Group Discussion Navigation

A screenshot of a Canvas group discussion with the groups icon highlighted in the top-left corner.

Group discussions will no longer show a blue box at the top of the page with the links for accessing each individual discussion. Instead, a group discussion will have a button with the “groups” icon in the top-left corner which you can select to switch between the discussions of each group.

Publishing and Subscribing

Two screenshots of the publish and subscribe icons of a discussion topic. The first screenshot shows the unpublished and unsubscribed icon states; the second screenshot shows the published and subscribed icon states.

The buttons for publishing a discussion and subscribing to it (for notifications) have shrunk into smaller icons that can be found next to the options (three dots) menu in the top-right corner of the discussion topic. You can select these smaller publish and subscribe icons to publish or unpublish a discussion and subscribe or unsubscribe to a discussion.

Ready, Set, Discuss!

Knowledge of these new features and interface changes is all you need for a smooth transition to using the Discussions Redesign in your courses. Your existing discussions will automatically upgrade on May 13 with all existing topics and replies retained. We hope that the fresh look and new features will facilitate more robust interactions within your courses! If you want to discuss ideas for using Canvas discussions in your course with a member of our team, we encourage you to request a CATL Consultation or reach out to us at catl@uwgb.edu.